September 18 marked the grand opening of the 2025 China International Urban Rail Transit Exhibition & CAMET Forum in Qingdao. The event served as the platform for CRRC Braking to debut, under the organization of CRRC, its complete series of intelligent electro-mechanical braking products.
Over a century of technological evolution has shaped rail transit braking systems into the currently dominant electro-pneumatic systems. However, constrained by their fundamental working principle, these systems remain dependent on compressed air to convert braking commands into actual braking force. This reliance on a complex network of air pipelines, reservoirs, and control valves inherently limits further advancements in key areas such as response speed, weight reduction, intelligence, and environmental sustainability.
The newly launched intelligent electro-mechanical braking system comprises three product variants: standard, compact, and tread-type, along with an SIL4 integrated controller. Representing a true generational leap, this all-electric, intelligent, and high-performance system replaces traditional compressed air with direct electric drive. It completely eliminates long-standing operational challenges such as medium leakage and complex maintenance, achieving full electrification from control to execution. Key performance advantages include exceptional responsiveness (approximately 40% faster braking response time), superior control, high redundancy, advanced intelligence, and significant weight reduction (over 15% lighter overall). Furthermore, it features 100% intelligent self-diagnosis for its critical components.
As a pioneering domestic developer of electro-mechanical braking systems, CRRC Braking has established a full product platform encompassing standard, compact, and tread-type models. The company has achieved the milestone of the technology's first domestic vehicle installation and batch commercial deployment in China. This smarter, more energy-efficient, convenient, and simplified braking technology holds broad future applicability across various rolling stock, including metro, intercity, regional trains, and EMUs, and is poised to significantly advance the development of integrated multi-system train control technologies.
